Cheng Xia wasn’t in a hurry to reply after receiving the message from Chen Yijun. He first called his agent Zhou Yan and wanted to know what arrangements his agent would make for tomorrow.
The moment the call connected, Zhou Yan spoke anxiously, “Cheng Xia, I was just going to call you. Chen Yijun’s agent has contacted me and said to try out the makeup and set the look tomorrow. The MV will be shot within a week. Her schedule is very fast and we can only try our best to cooperate. Do you have any questions about tomorrow?”
Zhou Yan used the computer desktop WeChat version to communicate with the other agent while talking to Cheng Xia on the phone.
Cheng Xia nodded without hesitation. “I have no problems. Sister Yan, please make the arrangements.”
Zhou Yan typed the words ‘no problem’ in WeChat and then said, “Chen Yijun is very nice. She offered to give you a 20,000 yuan performance fee. I want to ask your opinion. Do you want this money?”
Cheng Xia laughed. “Who needs the money? Sister Yijun is willing to help me as a newcomer and I should be thanking her. Accepting a performance fee is too stingy. It is better to play in friendship. Besides, I am her fan. This is equivalent to following her. If she chooses someone else then I won’t have the chance to show my face.”
Zhou Yan nodded with relief. “You understand it. Get up early tomorrow and come to the company at 9:30 a.m. to find me.”
“Yes, Sister Yan. I will see you tomorrow.”
After hanging up the phone, Cheng Xia politely replied to Chen Yijun’s message and thanked her.
At this time, the top floor office of the Tianxuan Group.
Pei Shaoze asked Zhang Fan who knocked on the door, “What did Director Liu say?”
Zhang Fan took a contract and handed it to him. “I just called Director Liu to confirm it. He will talk to you in Private Room 1 of the western restaurant on the 3rd floor of Longhua Building at 11:30 tomorrow morning.”
Pei Shaoze nodded and took the contract from Zhang Fan to read it carefully.
He didn’t like to drag things out. If he felt they were suitable after tomorrow’s meeting then he would hand the contract to the other person as soon as possible. It was only when the director and screenwriter were appointed that the actors could be decided and they could start filming.
Director Liu’s full name was Liu Xueyi. He was a newcomer who graduated from the directors department of the film academy. He was currently 26 years old and was relatively young among directors. Pei Shaoze approached him because he was affordable and just finished a drama, so there was plenty of time. The big-name directors were expensive and had no time in their schedule.
Secondly, Liu Xueyi was very active in the field of online dramas in recent years. He had filmed three low-cost youth idol dramas. He might not be well-known and the dramas he directed didn’t make a splash but the style of his dramas were warm. The ratings on the movie and television forums all had ratings of more than 8 points which wasn’t bad. It showed he was very strict about the quality of the online drama.
This director was decided by Pei Shaoze after reading the information of hundreds of directors.
Zhang Fan had recently worked overtime with Pei Shaoze and he admired President Pei’s dedication. President Pei looked carefully at every director’s information and read reviews on the Internet. He even personally clicked on their representative works to see the director’s style.
This attitude of checking information was as serious as a graduate student working on their graduation thesis.
From a sloppy rich second generation to a serious, career-oriented man, it was almost like Pei Shaoze was completely reborn.
Pei Shaoze handed the contract to Zhang Fan. “Go to the legal department and stamp it. Then come to Binhu Villa with the driver tomorrow at 9 o’clock to pick me up. You will go to see Director Liu with me.” He looked up at the assistant in front of him and spoke warm words, “You have been working hard the past few days. You can leave work early today.”
Zhang Fan’s heart filled with joy. “Thank you President Pei!”
Cheng Xia started to read the original novel. It was so fascinating that he had read until late at night. He put down his book, walked to the French window and rubbed his sore shoulder. Suddenly, his eyes fell on a window diagonally opposite him.
It was the 33rd floor of the Tianxuan Building. It was off work time and the entire Tianxuan Building was turned off. Therefore, the lights on the 33rd floor office were particularly conspicuous.
The person in the office seemed to have opened a window for ventilation. Cheng Xia saw the tall man get up from the desk and pour a glass of water. Then he carried the cup and stood at the window. It was across the street so Cheng Xia couldn’t see the person’s face clearly. Still, judging by the figure alone, this was Pei Shaoze, President Pei!
Still working overtime so late? What a responsible and dedicated boss.
[Cheng Xia’s good impression of you +5.]
Pei Shaoze who was lifting the cup to drink water, “?”
Today he didn’t meet Cheng Xia at all or have any contact with him. Why did the good impression suddenly increase?
It was like a small seedling planted in a flowerpot, growing tall by itself without watering or fertilizing. Cheng Xia was a seedling that grew on his own.
Pei Shaoze happily drank the water, took out his phone and sent a WeChat message to Cheng Xia. [You are going to shoot the MV tomorrow?]
Cheng Xia was startled by the message that suddenly popped up on the phone and hurriedly replied, [Yes. President Pei, you know about it?]
[Chen Yijun told me. Director Zhang has worked with her many times. He is strict and it is common to take one shot several times. You should be mentally prepared. This MV shooting might not be as easy as you imagined.]
[I understand.] Cheng Xia replied, followed by another message. [President Pei, rest early. Don’t work too hard!]
[Yes, you should also go to bed early.] Pei Shaoze was about to leave work. After sending the message, he closed the window and headed to the underground garage. Cheng Xia saw the lights turn off in the office opposite him and then he headed to the bathroom to take a shower.
The next day, Cheng Xia got up at exactly 7 o’clock. He washed up and wore clean clothes casually. In any case, Sister Yijun said the sponsor would provide clothes and he just had to bring himself.
The assistant Xu Rongrong came over early in the morning to give him a nutritious breakfast. She was carrying a bag. This bag was like a treasure chest that was filled with all types of living utensils. Cheng Xia couldn’t help sighing. “Sister Rong, you are too well prepared!”
Xu Rongrong replied, “I am your assistant. I naturally have to take good care of you.”
Cheng Xia smiled at her. “Sister Rong is working hard.”
This young man had a sweet and polite mouth. It was very pleasant for Xu Rongrong to hear him call her ‘sister.’ She was fortunate that she chose Cheng Xia when the assistants were assigned. Her attitude toward Cheng Xia became even gentler. “Eat breakfast first and then we will go to the company to find Zhou Yan.”
Zhou Yan was already ready when the two of them came to the company. After telling Cheng Xia some precautions, the three of them went downstairs to the parking lot. He originally thought that since Chen Yijun was a big star, she might be late. As a result, Chen Yijun’s nanny car was punctual and arrived at the garage at 10 o’clock.
Chen Yijun was wearing cool sunglasses. She lowered the window and waved to Cheng Xia. “Cheng Xia, come and take my car!”
Cheng Xia looked back at his agent and saw that Zhou Yan had no objections. Therefore, he walked over to Chen Yijun and sat in the backseat with her. The agent and assistant got into another car.
Chen Yijun’s nanny car was very spacious and the back seat easily allowed an adult to lie down and sleep. Chen Yijun closed the car curtains, turned on the lights and handed Cheng Xia a stack of materials. “This is the script of the MV. You can read it first.”
Cheng Xia took a closer look and found that his role in the MV had no lines from beginning to end. After all, it was a song MV. It would be weird if someone spoke in the middle of singing. No lines was normal and the difficulty of acting without lines wasn’t any lower than with lines.
If there were lines then actors could express their emotions by controlling the volume and the ups and downs in their voice. Powerful actors could draw the audience in with one or two lines. Meanwhile, this type of ‘mute acting’ without lines relied entirely on movements and the eyes. For Cheng Xia, this was no small challenge.
Cheng Xia finished looking and Chen Yijun bluntly told him, “I recorded this single last month and I want to release it on Valentine’s Day. The MV has to be filmed within a week and there is post-production, so the time will be more rushed. It will be hard on you for the next few days.”
Cheng Xia understood. “I understand that your song is about first love. It is indeed more appropriate to release it on Valentine’s Day. In addition, this year’s Valentine’s Day and the Spring Festival are only apart by three days so the music websites will have the largest traffic.”
Chen Yijun looked at Cheng Xia with gentle eyes. “There are many singers who want to release new songs during the winter vacation and it isn’t easy to stand out in the competitive winter holiday season. I didn’t choose casually when picking you to act in this MV. The first time I saw you, I thought you were particularly suitable for this song. Cheng Xia, jiayou.”
Cheng Xia seriously nodded. “Sister Jun, rest assured that I will cooperate well.”
Chen Yijun smiled and patted Cheng Xia on the shoulder. Then she used her phone to take a photo with Cheng Xia. She wanted to post it to her circle of friends and wrote a few sentences, only to delete them. “No, I have to keep it a secret. I will give everyone a surprise later!”
Soon, the nanny car drove to a nearby school. Due to the recent winter vacation, the students had all gone home. Therefore, Chen Yijun simply borrowed the school venue to shoot the MV. The staff were ready on-site.
After getting out of the car, Chen Yijun took Cheng Xia to see the director. “This is Director Zhang. Director, this is the newcomer I told you about, Cheng Xia.”
Director Zhang specialized in shooting MVs for singers and had strict requirements. He had been a bit unhappy when he heard that Chen Yijun had found a newcomer. As a result, his eyes lit up when the young man walked over and politely said, “Director Zhang, hello.”
A sunny and warm young man, the first love that would never be forgotten in their memories. Wasn’t this face suitable for first love?!
Director Zhang excitedly pulled Cheng Xia to the dressing room. “Quickly, set the makeup and hairstyle. I want to try taking a few shots.”
Cheng Xia was dragged away and was a bit flustered. Seeing Cheng Xia being dragged away, the agent Zhou Yan and assistant Xu Rongrong followed nervously.
Cheng Xia was sent to the dressing room by the director to change his clothes.
Since the scene of the MV shooting was at a school, Cheng Xia had to change into a school uniform. The school uniform was provided by the sponsor and was blue and white. Most people wearing these clothes would look ugly but Cheng Xia looked like a cover model in them. People with good proportions looked good in everything. If Cheng Xia endorsed this uniform then it was estimated that the uniform would be sold out.
The director’s eyes lit up and he had Cheng Xia sit down in front of the makeup mirror. The makeup artist and stylist immediately started working on his face and hair. Cheng Xia felt like he was about to become a guinea pig on the testing bench.
The makeup artist asked him to open and close his eyes and he had to cooperate obediently.
After a while, the makeup and styling were finally determined.
The simple short black hair and bangs without any extra touches made him look fresh and natural. Cheng Xia’s skin was white and applying foundation didn’t give him the too heavy makeup feeling. The shadow on his nose made the young man’s nose more refined and three-dimensional. The color of the lipstick that the makeup artist picked for him was only a bit darker than his own lip color and he looked quite great after it was applied.
The natural makeup combined with the refreshing short hair… wasn’t this precisely the best looking boy in school? Chen Yijun walked into the dressing room and cried out with an exaggeration, “Ahhhh so beautiful! Cheng Xia, I want to be your number one sister fan… no, little sister fan!”
The people around her laughed at her exaggerated acting. Unexpectedly, the famous singer Chen Yijun actually had this type of personality in private. Cheng Xia looked at her and spoke seriously, “Sister Jun, you are my idol. Don’t make fun of me.”
Chen Yijun smiled and took a few photos of Cheng Xia.
Director Zhang rubbed his hands excitedly from beside her. “Come on, let’s try to take a few shots first!”
Proofreader: Cat
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